Dare You To Love Me

«30» a delicate dance

When her hand reached out tentatively, trying to bridge the gap between them, Fou'ad could only stare at it, his heart jumping to his throat, unsure of what she was doing, then her fingers curled in on themselves before she could make contact with him.

And damn, he wished she had touched him.

A long moment passed before their eyes tangled again, and just when he thought he could drown in them forever, her brisk tone cut through the spell once again. "Shall we?"

She didn't wait for his answer, just straightened her shoulders and started toward the door, her strides unhurried yet edgy.

Something about the set of her shoulders made him think of Jawad when his wife had died.

He didn't realize that it would destroy something in him to see his wife share the same mannerisms with his elder brother and it killed something in him, because she didn't trust him enough to share her problems with him.

But perhaps, he was reaching too far too soon.

Maybe Abbad was right, he had to take it slow.

He had offered her an out the night before. The fact that she hadn't left or requested for divorce meant that she was staying, right?

•-۵-•

The ride to her father's house was done in relative silence. While she desperately wanted to bring up the divorce, she had no idea how to address it.

Just the thought of being separated from him made her mouth taste like ash. But for the life of her, Yaseerah couldn't think of her future at the moment, not when she had no idea whether her mother had a future or not.

Perhaps it would have been easier if she didn't love him, if her feelings for him didn't cloud her mind.

Something had shifted inside her this morning. Perhaps it was the talk with Abbad or Amina that had finally done it. But now, all that she could feel and think of was the idea of forever with him, if he still wanted her.

The air between them hummed with a hundred unspoken words, tightening her lungs, and cutting off her flow of oxygen, until she started to feel lightheaded.

Even though the air conditioning was on, she cracked open the window, and stuck her head outside, sucking in a breath of fresh air.

Fou'ad didn't say a word about the open window, but she could feel the heat of his stare like a hot brand against her skin.

She left the window open, but stuck her head back inside for safety reasons, keeping her gaze between her legs, until they arrived at her father's house, where bigger worries drowned out the nerves and tension between them.

As Fouad's car pulled up to the grand entrance of the house, Yaseerah's grip tightened on the door handle, her knuckles turning white as she mentally prepared herself for the encounter ahead.

Blowing out a breath and forcing the memories of her last encounter with her father before he handed her over to Fou'ad in the deep recesses of her mind, she stepped out of the car, feeling the weight of the evening settling on her shoulders like a heavy shadow.

Beside her, Fouad emerged, his presence providing her a comforting anchor amidst the brewing storm, despite his ignorance.

A tension unlike any other crackled in the air between them as Yaseerah hovered by the car, the house suddenly being the last place she wanted to step her foot into.